The document discusses the concepts of e-government, we-government, and government as a platform. It defines we-government as involving collaboration between government and citizens. Government as a platform means government provides tools and resources for citizens to solve problems and share ideas. Examples mentioned include NASA Clickworkers, Peer to Patent, Apps for Democracy, and SeeClickFix. The principles of Government 2.0 are outlined as being open by default, open to self-service, tapping outside wisdom, letting people experiment. Potential benefits discussed are lowered transaction costs, increased civic participation, and less deference to experts.

1. DPI-665
Politics of the Internet
Mar 26, 2012
We-Government,
Government as a Platform,
And Govt 2.0
Micah L. Sifry
Audio: http://bit.ly/HHyAq4
CC-BY-NC-SA

2. Topics for discussion
• E-government or e-democracy vs we-
government.
• Vending machine vs platform for
collaboration.
• Explain the differences.
• What are some working examples of
“government as a platform”?
• What are the potential benefits to expanding
this model further?

3. What is driving this trend?
• Lowered transaction costs are making
self-organization easier (inside and
outside of govt)
• The “long tail” of civic participation (the
“government participatory class”
identified by Pew)
• The decline in deference to experts

4. Principles of Govt 2.0
• Open by default
• Open to self-service
• Tap the wisdom outside of govt
• Let people experiment
• This is not participatory democracy or
direct democracy or deliberative
democracy

5. Some examples
• NASA Clickworkers:
(beamartian.jpl.nasa.gov/welcome)
• Peer to Patent: (peertopatent.org)
• Apps for Democracy (apps.dc.gov)
• SeeClickFix.com
• OpenStreetMap and Haiti
(http://vimeo.com/9182869)

6. Note for Weds class
• Watson and Mayo “Power of
Information” task force report link:
http://www.commentonthis.com/powerofinform
• Watson on new task force:
http://www.tom-watson.co.uk/2008/03/power-